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 The birth place of Franz Kafka, author of Metamorphosis, Prague continues to be the kind of city that, once you go there, it is difficult to leave and which draws you back again and again. Visitors never fail to be enchanted by the magical air of the city’s streets, its traditional cafés, its age-old literary atmosphere.
The best way to visit Prague is on foot. Walking around the city is a pleasant way of really getting to know the city and its many attractions. Few fail in this way to discover Prague’s nature: restless, cheerful, mysterious, melancholy, cultured, European. Here is a rich world of outstanding sights and quiet nooks and crannies. Situated in the centre of Europe, this “city of a thousand spires” has been built – and rebuilt – in the most varied artistic styles until, all in all it looks like something out a fairy tale.
Prague boasts palaces, towers and churches, castles and museums representing all the most important architectural styles. This is, above all, a city with enormous cultural wealth. In 1992, in view of its outstanding cultural and landscape importance, Prague’s historic centre was inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List.
A good starting-point for a tour of Prague is Staromestske Namesti, the Old Town Square, the most important square in the old town, dating back to the 12th century. Here we find such sights as the Baroque Church of St Nicholas and the Rococo Goltz-Kinský Palace, which houses the National Gallery and is one of the most beautiful buildings in the capital of the Czech Republic. O
verlooking the square is the Our Lady of Tyn, Prague’s most outstanding Gothic church, and the Old Town Hall Tower with the Astronomical Clock, a sophisticated mechanism built in 1490 and reproducing the planets and the known world. Every hour on the hour, Death pulls the bell while the twelve apostles run around in a circle. Nearby is Karlova street, which leads from the Town Hall to the river, passing the Clementinum, a former Jesuit monastery that now houses the lovely National Library, which possesses the largest collection of Kafka’s works.
From this Old Town Square we can also take Parizska street, with its many modern shops and cafés. Here we can find the Old-New Synagogue (Staronova), the oldest in Prague. On the west bank of the River Moldava, going up to the Castle, we find Zlatá Ulička (Golden Lane) the old alchemist street and, a little further up, the north wall of the citadel, built on Hradcany Hill. This is where we come to one of the city’s most outstanding attractions, Prague Castle. As if a city in itself, the castle houses chapels, San Vito Cathedral, the Royal Palace, gardens and even homes adjoining the walls. Not far off is Charles Bridge, where street vendors and musicians enliven proceedings as we cross the city’s oldest bridge, the only one closed to traffic. Some 515 metres long and 10 metres wide, the bridge is fortified on either side by two majestic towers.
Turning now to the local cuisine, visitors to the Czech Republic capital should not leave without trying the delicious bread or potato meatballs or the traditional choucroute, fermented cabbage. Other popular dishes include knedlo-vepro-zelo, roast pork with cabbage, bramborak, potato omelette, svickova, an exquisite, rich thick cream, and bramborak salat se sekanou, potato salad seasoned with spices. The Czech people also love their desserts, and the fine sweetmeats we can find here include delicious little cakes filled with chocolate, fruit or cream.
Visitors to Prague will find many typical souvenirs, including delicate Bohemia porcelain in the shape of candelabra, soup bowls and gravy boats to give just a few examples of the many fine arts and crafts works that can be found in the Czech capital.
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The Eurostars Thalia Hotel has 124 comfortable rooms furnished with all the modern facilities to be expected of a true five-star establishment. Facilities include a plasma TV screen, a magnifying mirror and an electronic key card. The top floor, moreover, commands magnificent views over Prague Castle and the old town. 
